The Life of a Riddler
by KorgelGirl
Summary: Luke Scarlett has never really fit in anywhere.  Charlene Riddler is a young girl that fights tooth and nail for what she wants.  Lola Mason has become Charlene's little shadow, and life turns upside-down for this little girl.
1. Chapter 1

My bright green eyes flashed in anger at the prison guard. "Take me, but don't you _dare_ touch Lola!"I snarled, stepping between the big man and the little blonde girl.

"Oh, shut up. We don't want the little girl, we want you,"the guard spat at me.

"Charlie? I'm scared!"Lola cried, blue eyes wide as she clung to my legs.

I glanced down at the six-year-old. "Lola, it'll be fine. Just go find Luke. And when you see Luke, tell him I've gone to the castle." My smooth voice was assuring to the little girl.

"Yes, ma'am."Lola said.

"Ma'am?"the guard questioned, eyes wide. As Lola hurried away, I pushed my hood back, revealing my porcelain face and mane of auburn hair. The guard gasped.

"Ma'am." I confirmed. He flashed his yellow teeth in a smile and grabbed my left arm.

I scowled as he gave my arm a violent jerk. I used my right arm to pull something out of my boot: a bloodstained sword. In a second, I had the guard pinned against the wall, the blade at his throat.

Something moved behind me and I glanced back, seeing Luke Scarlett, without Lola. "Took ya long enough,"I grumbled.

Luke smiled at me. "Ahhh, I knew ya could handle it on your own,"he teased. I narrowed my eyes at him, but it was in play.

Suddenly, the guard squeaked, reminding me of his presence. I couldn't trust him, he'd have to die. A little extra pressure on the handle and... It was harder with my right hand, but I did it.

Still using my right hand, I tucked the sword back into my boot, the guard's blood dripping down my leg. As long as it wasn't mine, I could ignore it. But my left arm hurts sooo bad! I can't ignore _that_. Luke was looking at my left arm, too, as it hung limp at my side. "Charlie, are you okay?"he asked, staring at me.

"Of course,"I answered too quickly, hiding my arm with my cloak. I was positive it was broken, because I couldn't move it. And I didn't want the 17-year-old boy worrying over me.

But he knew I was lying. "We're getting you to Djaq."  
>"No!"But it hurt. "Fine."<p>

We headed to the outlaws' camp. Djaq instantly hurried over, Will attached to her side.

"Charlie!"Djaq pulled open my cloak, eyes widening. "I'm gonna have to knock you out to fix it, Char. Luke, take her hand. She will probably crush it."

Luke nodded, obediently taking my right hand. I lightly squeezed it, unsure of what else to do. Luke brushed my hair out of my eyes with his free hand. "It'll be all right. Djaq's the best."he said.

"I know,"I answered, glancing at Will who was putting his arm around Djaq's shoulder. This was gonna hurt. Djaq's face confirmed that. And she was upset that she had to be the one to hurt me. Djaq picked up a large rock, and the last thing I saw was Luke's face as the pain overwhelmed me.


	2. Chapter 2

"No, I didn't _die_, Lola. It's really me!"I laugh.

"Charlie!"she squeals in delight, finally convinced. She hurls her small frame at me, latching onto my leg. Luke leans silently against a wall, studying us. I meet his eyes and he turns red. Djaq had told me I'd better watch out for any guys continuously watching me or getting too close, but Luke's the only guy that sticks around. The only guy my age, anyway, I think, remembering Marc.  
>Lola pulls on my skirt. "Charlene!" The use of my full name lets me know that she's been trying to get my attention for a little while.<br>"Yes, Lola?"I bend down towards her.  
>She whispers into my ear. "I visited you with Luke. And he-he-he took your hand a-an-and..."She's excited: I can tell by her stutter. "He k-ki-kiss-kissed your hand!"she squeaks. "He was so sad you were hurt...and me too."<br>I glance at Luke in surprise. "Did he, now?"  
>"Mmmmmmmhm!"Lola drags the word out for emphasis.<br>"I did what?"Luke asks, heading towards us.  
>"Took Lola to see me. How sweet!"I say quickly, but Lola adds, "And you kissed my Charlie!" I turn red. Luke just shrugs, then nods. Lola's name is called in the distance.<br>"Coming, Darlene!"Lola calls, then hugs me again. "Bye, sister."She giggles, then runs towards her friend's voice.  
>"Be back in time for supper."I tell her.<br>I watch her go, then turn around, bumping into Luke. How, when, and why did he get so close? "Luke!"I scold.  
>He smiles. "My turn for a hug, Charlene." Hug? Charlene? Luke never calls me Charlene, and he knows I'm not much for hugs. "C'mon!"he pleads, still smiling as he opens his arms.<br>"Fine!"I say, stepping into them quickly before I can tell myself otherwise. He's stronger than he looks, just like Will...  
>Thinking of Will reminds me of Djaq and her warning. But Djaq is so happy with Will! And Will always gets that look that Robin and Marian have. And once or twice, I've caught Luke looking the same way. Kinda like now...<br>I pull away. "Hugging time is over,"I say quickly.  
>Luke chuckles and sighs. "All right." Suddenly, he yawns, then kicks at a rock.<br>"Wanna cause chaos?"I ask with a mischievous grin.  
>"I'd love to, but Charlie, Djaq said to not strain your arm or your head. And Will would kill me because Djaq would get pissed and...Lots of crap would happen."<br>I roll my eyes. "Thanks for your concern,"I joke.  
>Luke snorts. "Yeah. Wow, it's funny: You're not like any girl I've ever met."<br>I raise my eyebrows. My long red hair is pulled back in a complicated braid, and I'm wearing a plain green dress over my boots. Other than the boots, I sure _look_ like the other girls of Locksly. "How so?"  
>"You cause 'chaos', fight, kill guards, talk with outlaws, and carry a sword in your boot. Instead of Miss Riddler or Miss Charlene, you go by Charlie. You have a temper as fiery as your hair, yet you are as gentle as a lamb with Lola. And you don't treat me like a celebrity because I'm Will Scarlett's kid brother."<br>"Trouble is just what I do. I fight and kill to stay alive, of course. The outlaws have saved me many times, and so has my sword. They are my friends. Charlie's my name, not Charlene or Miss Riddler. Lola is like a little sister to me, I need her and she needs me. And who you are has nothing to do with who your brother is and what he does. _You_ are what makes you who you are."I say, laughing.  
>Luke shakes his head, chuckling lightly. "Add modesty to that list." I roll my eyes.<br>"Hey! Let's go practice archery!"  
>"With <em>trees<em> as targets."Luke laughs, and nods.  
>I give a playful sigh. "Fiiiiiine!"I whine jokingly.<br>So we tromp together into the trees, bows in hands. I have a quiver of arrows in my right boot because the left had my sword. Not good to confuse the sword for arrows...Ow. When we get to our archery place, I hold the bow awkwardly, because of my 'injury.' Luke notices. Of course. He slides his hand into my boot and pulls out the arrows so I don't have to, which was completely unnecessary and totally inappropriate. But I don't say anything because I really don't care. He straightens up, watching me struggle to hold the bow steady. If I can barely hold it up, how am I supposed to fit an arrow to it?  
>Luke suddenly stands behind me, arms on mine to help support the bow. I manage to fit the arrow to it and hold it up again. So I turn my head to thank Luke, and find myself falling into his eyes. He's <em>really<em> close. "Uh, th-thanks."I whisper.  
>Luke flashes a smile. He's not flustered at all, and the fact that I am gets me even <em>more<em> flustered. "Anytime." His arms drop from mine to my waist. Trying not to get to squirmy at this sudden move, I let the arrow fly, but it sails past the tree and straight into...a rabbit's neck? The rabbit falls and Luke bursts out laughing. "Nice, Charlie! Great, Will is going to laugh!"  
>"But Djaq told me not to shoot. Well, I need to learn to use my right, so I was practicing, okay?"I throw the bow over my shoulder and stuff the arrows back into my boot. Then I run to the dead rabbit, Luke close behind.<br>It's a fat rabbit, lots of meat on it. Luke whoops. I laugh. It's so heavy I can barely lift it with my right hand, but I do. So Luke and I head for the outlaw's camp. "Djaq! Will!" I call. Djaq and Will appear, closely followed by Robin and Allan.  
>"What?"Will asks.<br>Djaq sees the rabbit and she frowns. "You were hunting?"  
>"No!"Luke answers for me, laughing, then launches into the story.<br>Amusement dances in Djaq's eyes when Luke finishes, and Will laughs. Robin chuckles, and even Allan cracks a smile.  
>"Charlie Riddler actually <em>missed<em>?"Robin teases. Allan, Will, and Luke laugh.  
>Djaq smiles, "With her left arm recovering from being broken. Not everyone is as ambidextrous as you, Hood!"She jokes. Will chuckles, wrapping his arm around her shoulders. Luke glances at me. Allan laughs, and so does Robin.<br>"Your tongue is as sharp as your sword, Djaq!"Robin teases back.  
>Djaq laughs, hands up in 'defeat.' "All right, all right." She leans against Will, smiling up at him. Robin walks off, probably to find Lady Marian. Allan takes our rabbit to Much so Much can cook it. Luke slings his arm over my shoulders. "Well Charlie, should we get back?"He asks with a yawn. I shrug and dance out of reach.<br>"Sure." So Will leads the way to Locksly.  
>"I'll walk you home,"he offers.<br>I quickly shake my head. "No, Luke. Good night. Tell Lola I said, 'G'night.' Please."  
>"Oh,, all right. Sweet dreams. And I'll tell Lola." Luke disappears. I hurry home. Marc meets me at the door, and I can smell the alcohol on his breath. "Oh, it's Charlene. C'mon, let's get to bed,"he slurs, grabbing me by the right arm.<br>I panic, pulling away. "I'm sixteen! We aren't even married yet and I hope we never will be!"I yell. Yeah, I'm engaged to this 24-year-old-doctor. And I have absolutely no say in it.  
>He grabs at my dress this time, in a drunken attempt to tear it off. I'm pressed against the wall now. So I kick at him, shoving and buying myself enough time to slip away. I run blindly through the dark town. It's only when I see Luke's face that I realize I'm on Luke's doorstep and I'm crying.<br>Luke grabs me in a tight hug, taking me into his house as he shuts the door. "Good God, Charlene, what's wrong?" I'm surprised we don't wake up little Lola, curled on the floor.  
>I wipe tears from my cheeks. "Luke, my fiancee..."<br>"You're engaged?"he cries out, letting go of me.  
>"No, yes! Luke, it's prearranged. I hate Marcus! But I can't get out of it until one of us dies! Now quiet, you'll wake Lola."<br>Luke relaxes a little bit, but not all the way. "So, what's wrong? And why'd you come here?"  
>"Marc had been at the tavern. Luke, he was drunk. And he tried to take off my dress, so I ran...and came here. I don't know why. You...You're my only friend. I <em>had<em> to come here."  
>Luke looks mad. "Marc who? I'll kill him!"he snarls.<br>"No!" Luke starts to pace, ignoring me. "You can't...Luke-"  
>"No! You're sixteen! You shouldn't have problems like this. How old is he? He has no right to-"<br>"He's 24, Luke. And I don't want you getting hurt!" I grab his arm. "Luke, please...Please...Don't leave me, Luke."I whisper.  
>Luke freezes mid-step. "I- Charlie- Fine." He studies me. "Are you all right?"<br>"I'm...Luke, I'm fine. But I'm not going home. I'll go stay with Djaq."  
>"Does she know about Marcus?"<br>"No."  
>"You're staying here. Take the bed. I'll sleep on the floor."<br>"Luke, it's your house, you sleep in the bed."  
>"Char-"<br>"You get the bed." I say stubbornly.  
>He sighs, running a hand through his hair. "Fine." So Luke climbs into his bed. I'm still shocked that Lola hasn't even stirred. "Good night,"he says, blowing out the candle as I lay by Lola. Darkness settles over the room. I feel a wave of exhaustion hit me, so I fall asleep quickly. But I wake up in the middle of the night, feeling like I'm flying. But I quickly fall back asleep.<p> 


	3. Chapter 3

By six o'clock, I'm fully awake, and I prop myself up on the pillows to look around the ro- Pillows? I'm on Luke's bed. Lola is still curled on the floor. "Dangit, Luke!"I snarl to myself, tossing the quilt off of me. "Luke!" I stare at the foot of the bed. Luke is there, on top of the quilt. His head shoots up when he hears his name.  
>"Where is Charl-huh? Oh, God, please don't kill me! I was keeping guard and I fell asleep!"Luke says quickly, leaping off the bed.<br>"Right,"I hiss, scrambling after him. That's when I realize I'm wearing a nightgown. "I'll kill you!"I snarl, rage blazing in my eyes. How could he?  
>"I didn't do it! She did!" Luke whips around, pointing at the figure in the doorway.<br>"Djaq?"I frown, eying her. "Really?"  
>"Yes, no need to kill the boy over what <em>I <em>did." She chuckles.  
>"Thank you." I turn to Luke. "And I'm very sorry! I- I'm not thinking straight right now."<br>"Hey, it's all right. I'd be shaken too." Luke's smile is back. God, if Djaq weren't here, I'd kiss him! But I settle for a huge hug. Djaq seems to almost read my mind and, with a wink, she leaves the cottage.  
>My arms around Luke's neck, I quickly kiss his cheek, turning red. Surprised, he wraps his arms around me. "I'm glad you came to me."<br>"Nowhere else to go," I say into his ear.  
>"Always have some place to run to-"<br>"And always have a quick way there." I finish the quote. I live by that saying. "C'mon, let's go for a walk while Lola's still asleep." "Yeah, I'd love to,"he smiles and leaves the cottage so I can change back into my father's clothes. When I finish, I head outside after him, checking quickly on Lola before I do.  
>Halfway into the woods, I hear a noise. Luke hears it too. "What is it?"<br>"Humans,"I whisper. I reach into the folds of my cloak and brush my fingers against the daggers in there. "More than one. Probably three." Luke nods and I can tell he's reaching for his axe to be sure it's there. I can also see three figures in the distance. One disappears, one of the girls. Time for Luke and I to split up, too. Luke will meet the two head on, and I'll ambush from the side.  
>I see the remaining girl reach Luke. She takes out a sword. "Who have we here?" I hear her ask. A male is behind the sword-holder. But where's the other girl! "Speak!"the sword-holder demands of Luke. Luke shrugs. The sword flashes eerily close to him. I'm about to jump at her when the boy speaks.<br>"Artemis,"the boy warns, grabbing her arm. She freezes, and he speaks to Luke. "Would you happen to know where we could find Will and Luke Scarlett? And Allan A'Dale?"  
>"Who wants to know?"Luke asks calmly.<br>"Forgive me, I'm Casey Scarlett and this is Artemis A'Dale. Artemis is Allan A'Dale's sister, and I'm cousin to the Scarletts." Luke stays silent, and I know he will not give Robin's camp away. Artemis's sword flashes, and Casey isn't about to stop her this time, so I will.  
>I leap at the girl, landing on her back. She nearly falls over, but quickly regains her balance. "What the heck?"she snarls.<br>Casey yanks me off and I stumble into a tree. Luke grabs me before I hit the ground. I see Casey pulling out a hatchet. Yeah, he's a Scarlett, all right. But where is the third figure, the girl that hid? I don't feel safe without knowing where she's at. But I am thankful that I'm wearing my father's clothes because they still think I'm a guy. "Who are you?"Casey demands, snarling. Artemis glares at me. I make sure my face is hidden and I turn to Luke, nodding.  
>"I'm Luke, and that's my friend Charlie."Luke said, holding my right elbow to be sure I stay upright. My arm hurts!<br>"Oh, so you're gay?"A new, yet familiar voice cuts through the air, but the speaker isn't in sight. It's the girl. Casey sneers at Luke and Artemis snickers. But Casey does a double-take.  
>"Luke what?"he asks, eying Luke in suspicion.<br>I nod again at Luke, and he shrugs. "Luke Scarlett." Artemis gapes at him. Casey frowns, unsure of what to do. So I make it clear. My fingers picking up a large branch, I jump at Artemis again, bowling her over and her sword clatters to the ground as I raise the branch, ready to slam it into her head. The Hidden Girl finally reveals herself, appearing behind Casey. She's got a few daggers in her hands. "Get off. I'll kill you."I swear I know her somehow!  
>Luke growls, glaring at her. Casey nods when I don't move, and the girl fires one at me. I reach up and snag it out of midair, even though it was going really fast. "Thanks for the better weapon."I growl, my voice low. But I had used my left to grab the arm and it hurts really bad. I pass it to my right hand, pressing it to Artemis's neck. "I'll kill her,"I answer, using my normal voice, which gives me away as a girl. My hood slides back and they can <em>see<em> I'm female. The girl freezes. Artemis squeaks. Casey's eyes widen. But he quickly shakes his shock away: I am threatening his girl, after all. Luke takes this opportunity to tackle him.  
>Artemis shrieks. The other girl swears and slams a dagger into Luke's back, but Luke's hatchet is there, so I know it doesn't hit him. I spring off of Artemis, grabbing Luke. My arm is killing me, and Luke can tell I need to get out of there before it gets worse.<br>"Lacey,"Artemis snarls as the girl helps her up. "I want that ***** dead."  
>"Artemis, no,"Casey sighs. Lacey, or the hidden girl, swears again.<br>"Watch your mouth,"I snap, finally realizing who she is. Well, she is Lacey Finch...She and I used to be best friends. But now she's my enemy, I guess. She finally recognizes me, too.  
>"You watch yours, <em>Charlene<em>,"she snarls.  
>"Spacey Lacey."I growl.<br>Artemis whines. Luke gapes at me. Casey stares at Lacey, and the boys speak at the same time. "You know each other?"  
>Lacey and I answer at the same time. "Sadly." Now's the perfect time to escape. I spin Luke around and we race towards Locksly. We're just about there when a cloaked figure stops in front of us. Luke lets out a girlish squeal. I snort in laughter. It's only Will. As if on cue, Will says, "Good God, brother." He laughs, letting his hood down. Djaq appears behind him. "Wha-"<br>"Long story,"I say briskly. "Casey Scarlett's gang. We had a small fight, I'll explain later, get to camp." God, my arm hurts like a lifetime in Hell. Djaq nods and Will leads the way to Robin's camp.


End file.
